So, you've been playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl and you have become interested in Sonic the Hedgehog. You have practiced hard and you feel like you have reached that point where you need a little help pushing the rest of the way to that level you have been trying to reach. Let me help you to grab on to each of those 7 Chaos Emeralds and help you transform into the fabled Super Sonic. Welcome to 7 Chaos Emeralds; a Sonic guide to help you as you strive to reach your goal.

This guide will be organized into 7 Parts. Each part will be headed by a different colored emerald.Yellow Emerald: Standard Attacks

The Pummel: After grabbing Sonic knees the opponent and does 3% for each hit.

The Forward Throw: Sonic kicks the opponent upward for 9%.

The Backward Throw: Sonic rolls backward while holding the opponent and throws them out of the roll. This does 8% and is good for setting up for an edgegaurd.

The Down Throw: Sonic places the opponent on the ground and spins on them and shoots them out in front of him for 8%. This allows Sonic to use his great speed to tech chase the opponent.

The Up Throw: Sonic puts the opponent on his back and launches them up into the air using his spines for 12%. He can follow up with an aerial to combo the opponent for more damage.

More Coming Soon

Purple Emerald: Special Attacks

Homing Attack:This is the Neutral Special.Damage: 8%This attack homes on the enemy's back. This is why it usually hits the opponent's head and this is also why it misses very often making this attack one that should be used rarely and only for certain situations.Other Properties: There is a full charge and a short charge. You can shorten the time it takes to start by tapping the special button again in the middle of the charge. Sometimes using a longer or shorter start up will be able to throw off the opponent allowing the attack to hit.

Spin Dash:This is the Side special. Damage is based on how long you charge it. If you hit with the Spin Dash's hop, you deal 6% no matter the charge. The roll can do 7% - 10%.

Spin Charge:This is the Down Special. Damage is once again based on how long you charge it and can deal 7 - 10%. The Aerial Spin Charge (ASC) can land 7 - 11% depending on the charge.

Note: Both Spin Attacks are the same attack once they are rolling along the ground and even have the same diminishing returns. The Spin Dash Roll will from here on be referred to as the SDR.

Spring:This is the Up Special. A falling spring deals 4% damage. It is used primarily for recovery but can also be used for combos. This is because Sonic's Up Special allows him attack afterward making him somewhat unique compared to most characters. A spring to up air can kill an opponent off the top of the screen at as low as 80%. The spring can be left on the ground and both sonic and his opponent(s) can jump off of it again.

Red Emerald: Sonic Specific Advanced Techniques

Air Dash:If Sonic uses his side B on an upward incline that is roughly 45 degrees, when he leaves the platform, instead of dropping off like he normally would, he will continue to race across the screen as though he were still on the ground. He retains his hit-box and is invincible during the entire dash. The non-custom stages that this will work on are: Brinstar (after you destroy the platform strings on the sides), Delfino Plaza (at the end of the rotation over the sun), F-zero for some of the race cars, Hyrule Temple, New Pork City, Onett, Pictochat, Pokemon Stadium II (Earth stage), Pokemon Stadium I (Earth, Water, Jungle stages), Rainbow Cruise, and Yoshi's Island.

Grinding:After initiating a fox-trot, put the control stick nearly back to neutral and then push it forward slightly. Sonic should have a long slide added to the end of his foxtrot. Unfortunately, this still counts as a dashing state, and Sonic cannot use tilts or smashes. Strangely, it doesn't seem that any other character can do this, despite the fact that every other character can fox-trot

Homing Cancel:During the initial start-up of the Homing attack, the time taken to initiate the attack can be cut down by hitting b again.

Homing Stall:By using the homing attack near a ceiling, Sonic will hitthe ceiling and bounce off of it. This can be done infinitely to stall under a stage or can be used to travel under the stage if done carefully.

"Infinite" Down Air:After setting a spring on the ground Sonic can Dair onto the spring to bounce back up. By repeatedly Dairing onto the spring Sonic can Dair in place just above the spring until it disappears.

Infinite Jump:While over the stage, initiate side-b and then jump cancel it. While in the air, an attack may be initiated. Just before hitting the ground, side-b and jump again to restart the process.

Side-b slope cancel:While on a steep slope, a side-b that is jump canceled while charging or after release can be lead immediately into a smash or tilt attack.

Teleporting:After initiating an air dash, if Sonic hits something he will change his location in almost an instant. The change in position will always be the same horizontal distance, but the vertical distance can be altered depending on where Sonic is hit. After the teleport, Sonic continues air dashing and no other changes occur.

Gray Emerald: Advanced Spin Techniques

Sonic's spins have many properties than most people are unaware of until facing a Sonic main who knows how to use them. Here, we will break these properties down and learn how to use them to gain powerful advantages over our opponents.

The Forward B (spin dash) can be canceled into a shield during it's charge. Once it is fully charged it can NOT be canceled.

Using this while just outside an opponent's range is an excellent mindgame. For example the opponent may try to stop the spin that they see coming with an attack only to get shield grabbed. Grabbing, is often one of Sonic's best set ups for other attacks. Another common reaction is that the opponent shields, again leaving sonic to grab or to use a number of other attacks.

The spin dash also has invincibility frames during the initial hop that it has. This means that sometimes using this to attack works as well since your opponent may just end up hitting you in the invincible frames and get themselves hit.

It puts your opponent into a very difficult position of guessing how to try to react. A good Sonic can use this very often as long as they vary between letting the spin dash loose, shield canceling it and the different options after the shield cancel.

The Down B (spin charge) can also be shield canceled, but NOT when charging on the ground. A spin charge began in the air, otherwise known as an Aerial Spin Charge or ASC for short, can be shield canceled as soon as it impacts the ground. Sonic has multiple options for this, but another detail about the ASC, is that it can have multiple kinds of hit-boxes. If a person lets the ASC loose after charging it in the air, it will have one hit-box. If you hold forward on the analog stick, there will be two hit-boxes that can deal a total of 11% in a single hit. If you hold backwards, there won't be any hitboxes.

If Sonic uses the ASC, which should usually be the ASC holding forward since there is rarely a time where two hits is less ideal than one, and lands in his shield, than he may have hit his opponent into the air. Shield canceling the ASC allows for multiple follow up attacks including Sonic's beloved up air. If the opponent shields the attack, then ideally Sonic would land behind the opponent and may be fast enough to pivot and grab.

The spinshot is an AT that many Sonic mains probably already know, but just in case you are a Sonic who is unaware of how to do it, I will give a little description. By using either of the spin attacks, Sonic can jump out of them instantly by sacrificing his midair jump or if done on the ground, both jumps and also losing the hit-box, but gains incredible aerial speed close to the speed of his running speed. The best way for most people to do this AT is to use the forward B spin dash and then flick your thumb from the b button to the c-stick and just flick the c-stick down QUICKLY!!! The spin charge can also spin shot by holding down and b and flicking the c-stick up. If done on the ground, the spin charge using the c-stick up does not cost Sonic his midair jump and he will also have a hit-box on this "instant spin-dash jump."

The spinshot on the stage can be used for a very wide variety of mindgames.Here are some examples of it's uses:

-The Cat in The Hat combo (CiTH combo), which is spinshot > spring > dair.--- This is great for a quick hit and run style attack on a foe with larger range than Sonic. I, for example, abuse this against Olimar. It keeps me out of reach of his up smash and lets me try to hit with a spring or if the Olimar dodgerolls to avoid the spring, he eats a dair.

-Spinshot > ASC or Spinshot > shield canceled spin charge--- This can help chase down an opponent after knocking them farther away. Shield canceling it can add more mindgames to this already potentially mindgame filled AT.

-Spinshot > spin dash or Spinshot > shield canceled spin dash--- Similar to the last example with the ASC, the best use that I know of for this is to spin shot over the opponent baiting them to chase Sonic's landing. Using the spin dash shield cancel can allow Sonic to shield an incoming dash attack or up smash, for example, and allow him to get a shield grab.

-Spinshot > homing attack--- Homing attack as we all know is a very limited attack that most opponents easily shield of avoid. But, when done out of a spinshot the opponent rarely expects it and often is not prepared for it. By using the other spins out of the spinshot often, the opponent sometimes has a hard time differentiating the homing attack start up from the start up of other spins.

Spinshot > bair aka Boxobairing--- Spinshot to bair is a great combination of moves. Using the spinshot to go above the opponent and land an aerial from behind them is a great way to land a bair on an unprepared opponent.

All Sonic mains should use the spinshot VERY frequently to keep their opponent guessing. It is fast and hard to punish or to read and provides a wide variety of options and potential mindgames. Incorporating shield canceled spin dashes can also keep the opponent guessing at when a spinshot will even be used. It creates a lot of uncertainty for the opponent that a Sonic can take advantage of. By using these techniques and fake-outs a Sonic players skill will increase very much and allow him the ability to win matches that he might not otherwise have a chance in.

Blue Emerald: Advanced Running Techniques

There are several kinds of grounded movement and these should first be defined

Foxtrot: By tapping the analog stick forward all the way and quickly releasing Sonic does the Dash Start. Stringing together Dash Starts is called a Foxtrot.

Dash Turn: Medium duration turn where Sonic turns around more slowly than the Pivot.

Screech Stop: After beginning a full dash if Sonic stops running he will put both feet in front of him and screech to a stop.

Dash Dance: This is using the pivot multiple times in a row to cause Sonic to dash back and forth in place.

The Dash Dance Pivot is a very key part of Sonic's ground game. This can be done by doing a fox trot and then at the end of the fox trot start, another foxtrot and then pivot via a dash dance. This allows sonic to run and turn around very quickly and allows him to dash and turn and smash more quickly than normal. Other options include using the spin dash or using the spin dash cancel. This can be used to help mindgame the opponent even if you choose not to attack immediately out of it.

The True Pivot can be as key to Sonic's ground game as the Dash Dance Pivot. It is much more difficult though. It has all the same benefits of the Dash Dance Pivot plus the added bonus of being able to use tilts immediately instead of just smashes. The timing for a true-pivot is identical to the Dash Dance Pivot. Here's what makes it so difficult. Your final input has to be softer than a foxtrot.

Air Tripping:If Sonic uses his up-b and lands on solid ground before he enters the tumble animation, he will enter the tumble animation the next time he is in the air and begins to fall and will be in a state exactly as though he had just used his up-b. He will not be able to recover if he jumps/runs over the edge unless he can footstool or gets attacked. This is something that Sonic players need to be very cautious of. There is no advantage to this and it should be avoided.

Dash Attack Canceled Upsmash (DACUS):The effect of a dash cancel is to create a sliding up-smash (rather like the hyphen smash does for Sonic). The most practical way of executing the dash cancel requires a specific control configuration with tap jumping off. Initiate a dash by smashing the control stick in an upward diagonal direction. At any time during the dash, hit down on the c-stick to initiate a dash attack. Hit "z" to initiate an up-smash. If you hold "z" the up smash will charge. There is no significant advantage to using this over the hyphen smash for Sonic.

Foxtrot:Foxtrotting means initiating a dash by smashing the control stick forward, releasing the control stick to neutral, and then smashing forward again. Stringing this together results in the "foxtrot." The foxtrot is used in a number of pivots and dash cancels and is the building block for certain advanced techs.

Instant Dash Attack:Tap left or right on the control stick and down on the c-stick at the same time. If buffered out of a shield it results in an instant dash attack from the shield.

Infinite Jab Lock:When the enemy falls on the ground in hit stun and does not tech, it is possible to keep them stuck in that hit stun by using a jab. By repeatedly walking forward and jabbing, you can keep this going until the enemy either falls off the stage or hits a blast line.

Glide Toss:When holding an item, roll in the direction you would like to move and c-stick at the same time. You will throw the item and slide a pretty far distance and be able to attack instanstly.

Ledge Footstool Jumping:Characters hanging on ledges can be footstooled as long as they do not have invincibility frames. Sonic can ledge footstool after an up-b and if your opponent is grabbing the ledge you can jump off of them to get that extra distance you need to make it back onto the stage.

Hyphen Smashing:While dashing, smash up on the c-stick to immediately initiate an up-smash. Most but not all of the running momentum will be stopped by the up smash resulting in the up smash occurring along a curved path.

W-Edge Jump:While hanging on the edge, smash the control stick away from the stage and while holding it away immediately hit the jump button. Your character will wall jump from the edge and can proceed to use any aerial or attack of his choice.

Green Emerald: Sonic Match Up Advice

To be added soon.

Closing

This guide will most likely be updated many times before it reaches completion if it ever could be said to be complete. Be sure to check back every so often for more information regarding Sonic's metagame. I hope that you have found this guide helpful and that your gameplay will improve greatly from reading this guide. If you have any questions please feel free to ask and I will answer them to the best of my ability.

Special Thanks To:You! for readingNeoSeeker Forums for hosting this guideThe Sonic Boards on Smash World Forums for a lot of help with my own game.Especially:-Tenki-darkNES386-Espy aka Puffball64-TwinkleToes

Awesome job my friend, I too main Sonic and is excited to read this guide. I already subscribed to you in youtube. Are you "marvelousmarth"?

Yes, actually that is me.

Out of curiousity, did you subscribe after seeing one of my matches or my combo vid or a match by another person in my crew? Just curious to see what fellow Sonic mains think of my videos. Overall, most seem to like my combo vid, but my matches are somewhat less watched as well as anything of the rest of my crew (which that last part is especially understandable since why would sonics want to watch non-sonics?)

I'm glad you are excited about the guide. The Yellow Emerald and the Green Emerald will be updated when I have the time (which may be today or tomorrow, hopefully soon) so please check back every so often if you are interested in seeing them after they are completed.

Thank you. Glad you like it. I will update and change the font from being yellow to something else. Thanks for letting me know, I wasn't sure how that would turn out.

I made the yellow text brown instead for now. I noticed when I looked at the format of the OP that at the end where they noted when it was last updated, that they had a color that was like #66666 or something like that. Is there a number for a darker yellow or a gold or something that would be easier to read?

I actually subscribed to you, since the last time you came by to grace us with a combo video. My name is michie123.

You should definetly keep making appearances here to neo. Your like the one from Smashboards that i know that comes here. There arent many Sonic mains here im afraid.

Did smashboards ever fix their smash finder?

Cool thanks. I remember seeing your name on my list of people who have subscribed to me. I'll be trying to come here more often. Lately, I haven't been playing much smash at all and have been pretty inactive here and at smashboards and AiB and other places. I'm trying to be more active again and thought this would be a nice way to start. I don't know if smashboards ever did fix that or not. I only tried using it once.